Mohanlal responds to L2: Empuraan backlash: 'Sincerely regret any distress that may have been caused'

Mohanlal’s social media post, expressing the entire movie team’s 'sincere regret', was later shared by its actor-director Prithviraj and one of the producers Antony Perumbavoor in their respective accounts.

Malayalam superstar Mohanlal on Sunday expressed regret over the raging row surrounding his recently-released film L2: Empuraan and assured that the controversial portions would be removed from the movie.

The national award-winning actor posted a regretful note on his Facebook account hours after Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Opposition Leader V D Satheesan extended their support to the Prithviraj Sukumaran-directed movie and criticised the Sangh Parivar for the social media attack against its makers.

Mohanlal’s social media post, expressing the entire movie team’s 'sincere regret', was later shared by its actor-director Prithviraj and one of the producers Antony Perumbavoor in their respective accounts. Amidst the intense criticism unleashed by Sangh Parivar against some portions of the movie, Mohanlal said in his Facebook post, "As an artist, it is my duty to ensure that none of my films promote hatred toward any political movement, ideology, or religious community. With that in mind, both me and the Empuraan team sincerely regret any distress that may have been caused to those who love me."

"We also acknowledge that the responsibility for this rests with all of us who worked on the film. With this realization, we have collectively decided to remove such elements from the movie," the actor said. He further said that for the past four decades, he has lived his film life as one among the people. "Your love and trust are my only strength. I firmly believe that there is no Mohanlal beyond that," the actor added.

Prithviraj’s actor-mother, Mallika Sukumaran, alleged that there was an attempt to make her son a scapegoat in the controversy and asserted that he had not deceived anyone—neither Mohanlal nor Perumbavoor—as claimed by a section of people. In a Facebook post, the veteran actor also stated that everyone involved in the film had read the script together and collectively reviewed all scenes. Earlier in the day, CM Vijayan, who watched the movie along with his family members the previous evening, came up with a strongly worded FB post accusing Sangh Parivar of creating an "atmosphere of fear" regarding the stand adopted by its makers against communalism.

The Left veteran said the movie has reference to one of the "most brutal genocides the country has ever witnessed". That has angered Sangh Parivar and its masterminds, he alleged. "There have even been reports that the producers are being forced to re-censor and edit the movie under this pressure. This atmosphere of fear created by the Sangh Parivar is a matter of concern," the chief minister said.

He further pointed out that it is not good for democracy that communalists can destroy a work of art and viciously attack artists simply because they have taken a stand against communalism and portrayed its horrors. Stating that the rights to make films, watch, enjoy and evaluate them or agree or disagree with them should not be lost. The united voice of the country, which is rooted in democratic and secular values, must be raised for this, Vijayan said.State Finance Minister K N Balagopal and veteran CPI(M) leader E P Jayarajan also came out against the social media attack against the makers of ’Empuraan’ movie.

Senior Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, V D Satheesan, extended his whole-hearted support to the makers of the Empuraan movie and accused Sangh Parivar of "distorting history". In an FB post, Satheesan alleged that the Sangh Parivar believes that freedom of expression means freedom of things being created in their favour. "Their agenda is to celebrate such flawed works," he charged.

Stating that cinema is the creation of a group of artists, he said modifying the content of a work of art by threatening, insulting and humiliating through social media is not a success. "It is an indication of radical failure and cowardice. Don’t forget that no matter how much you try to cover it up, historical truths will always remain clear," the LoP added.

He also made it clear that he would surely watch the movie. However, BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar said he won’t watch Empuraan. He added that he was disappointed by this sort of movie-making. "I watched ’Lucifer’ and liked it. I had said that I would watch Empuraan when I heard it was a sequel to ’Lucifer’,” Chandrasekhar said in a Facebook post. Earlier, Chandrasekhar had endorsed the stand taken by senior party leader M T Ramesh that "a film should be seen as a film."

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"But now I have come to know that the makers of the movie themselves have made 17 amendments in the movie which is undergoing re-censorship," he said. He said that he understood that there were topics in the movie that disturbed Mohanlal fans and others. "A movie should be watched as a movie. It can’t be seen as history. Also, any movie that tries to build a story by distorting the truth is doomed to fail. So, will I watch this sequel to Lucifer? No. Am I disappointed by this type of moviemaking? 'Yes'," Chandrasekhar added.

L2: Empuraan, the second part of the Lucifer movie, a trilogy planned by the Prithviraj-Mohanlal team, has become a topic of hot debate over its critique of right-wing politics and the covert mention of the Gujarat riots. On Thursday, the day of the movie’s release, the Sangh Parivar vehemently criticised the film on social media, while the Congress and Left platforms celebrated the film for portraying the right-wing politics as villainous.